HoopsVibe's Very Quick Call: These kicks look good, feel good, and are possibly the dopest kicks to drop all summer. How do I know? I'm wearing mine right now and loving 'em.

October 4th was a big day for Derrick Rose. He turned 24, celebrated the launch of his latest custom kicks (the D Rose 3s), and he continued to share the journey of his rehab through his documentary "The Return of D Rose" episode 4. First things first, check out the official commercial for the D Rose 3 launch below.

Derrick's new shoe hits stores worldwide Oct 4 and are expected to sell faster than an Urban Outfitters t-shirt of Obama dunking over Romney. Derrick's absence from the court hasn't diminished his popularity or the cool factor of his latest kicks. These aren't just another pair of cool basketball shoes. These things are sweet. Derrick even broke down a little bit during the launch stating, "The D Rose 3 signature collection is special to me because I worked side-by-side with adidas on everything from materials to fit to colors to make it the best we've done yet. I love the new logo that calls out the most important things to me: my family, basketball and the city of Chicago."

The D Rose 3s come in an option of colorways, but my personal favorite is the black ones Derrick's holding in the pic above (also in the title pic at the top). The speckled sole, rear placement of the adidas logo, and glistening leather give it both a fresh and modern blacktop vibe. Be prepared to catch streetballers and celebs wearing these bad boys asap. The complete set of D Rose 3 gear can be seen below. Everything from socks, caps, shorts, shirts, kicks, and sweatshirts are decked out in Rose's custom logo. This is one box of goodies Santa should definitely get you the hookup on. If you can wait that long.

The whole concept behind the D Rose 3s is "The Return." This is a campaign that's been going on for adidas and Rose since August 15th. This documentary series follows Derrick through his rehabilitation and charts his return to dominance in the NBA. The 4th episode is below. Check it out.

As a basketball fan first, I for one am pulling for D Rose and part of "The Return." Rose is one of the humblest and kindest players both on and off the court. In a league of posers, posturing, and over-hyped egos, he is the exception to the rule. He is a true class act that works hard for his success and appreciates everything that comes his way. We look forward to seeing Rose on the blacktop soon and until he is, we'll enjoy his fashion forward kicks.

HoopsVibe's Very Quick Call: I was reminiscing about the days shoes only cost $200. Yikes!

Has basketball fans and sneaker heads it's easy for us to get caught up in the freshness of new kicks and ignore pricetags. Well, the Wall Street Journal never ignores money and this week they put out an article analysing the cost of kicks, especially a recent spike in Nike's prices. The first image below is probably the most telling. It's a cost and inflation adjusted chart of the price of sneakers. This means the WSJ factored in everything else that would affect the cost of these kicks and with all other things considered, Nike is simply charging much more for sneakers these days than in the past.

This is obviously seen in the new LeBron X kick that will retail for around $315, but is also impacting more affordable shoes like Chuck Taylors that went now go for $50 a pop (up from $45 last year). Analysists believe Nike is raising its' prices 5-10% across the board on most of its sneakers hoping the brand's popularity will overcome this price increase.

Nike is "not arbitrarily taking up prices," said spokeswoman Mary Remuzzi. "We are constantly looking at ways to enhance the product line with new innovation and product attributes."

Other brands are following suit too. adidas' signature basketball shoes are up 8% and their soccer cliets are up 15%. So much for prices coming down since we're in a recession. So much for companies feeling the pain the average American household and adjusting their absurdly expensive shoes.

This is capitalism 101. If they can bleed the money out of the basketball fans they'll do it. Don't expect these pricees to come down any time soon. People are still lining up around the corner for the top brands. Oh, and Nike stocks have soared to a near all-time highs this year peaking at $114.81 and curretnly hovering at a towering $95.77. At least the recesion is good for someone. LIke Nike says, "Just Do It," although now I think that more closely means "Just Make a Profit."